On August 31, 1949, Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson announced the creation of an Armed Forces Day to replace separate Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force Days. The single-day celebration stemmed from the unification of the Armed Forces under one department. The day selected would be the third Saturday in May of each year.
It just so happens that Armed Forces Day is tomorrow, which is the day of our Carver family reunion.
What made me want to write this ‘tribute to our warriors’ was a post sent to our Carver Family conference by a distant cousin, Brenda Soileau. She called attention to a web site where the US Army Band and Chorus welcomed Pope Benedict XVI at the White House.
The song they sang and played was the ‘Battle Hymn of the Republic.’ As I listened to the song you can be sure that shivers went up my spine. (Thank you Brenda.)
…and the patriotism what swept our nation. And I’ve never forgotten that many of my kinfolk fought in that war and in the wars that followed, including my son Andre, who served in Desert Storm. (My Navy service was during the Vietnam era.)
I guess a deep sense of military honor will always reside in my heart. The fact is that many of my family, both the Carvers and the Martins, have taken their place in the conflicts of our nation. Wish I could share all the names of my kin who have served as warriors, but I’d be sure to miss someone. (On the Martin side, the very first Martin that came to Louisiana was a Revolutionary soldier.)
However, there are two names that I want to especially recognize. Two of my mom’s brothers served in the Navy in WWII, Uncle Holiday and Uncle Grover. Uncle Holiday retired as a Commander in the Navy and has since gone to be with the Lord of Glory.
Uncle Grover lives in California. He was aboard the USS Indianapolis and was only one of the 317 who survived out of a crew of 1,196. A number of movies and books have been provided for what was considered to be ‘the worst naval disaster in history.’ The story of the Indianapolis is found at this site:
Every time I see a uniform I want to hug these guys and girls…
I just can’t help it. I am so proud of our service men and women. They will always be my heros. Here is a clip that tells the story of our warriors.
Tell them how very proud you are …
Don’t let the weekend go by without shaking the hand or hugging the neck of one of our service people. Let them know that they are your hero’s. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if every church throughout our land would give a standing ovation this Sunday to our service people.
Some many years ago the Lord began giving me songs, and each song carried a message from heaven. It was sort of like preaching the gospel in music.
Because I knew where the songs came from, it was my desire to make them available to anyone who would benefit from them. I did two things. First, I made a pledge in my heart to provide 200 CDs of my music as a free gift to whoever would like to have them. And so, in our 25th Christian Challenge Jubilee, I did just that.
The second thing that we did was to make my songs available through our web site. These songs can be downloaded and used freely. (Of course they are copyright so I ask that no money be involved in the use of the songs.) To review my music go to:
Jesus asked the attendant for the scroll of Isaiah. This is where He began to read:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”
“And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’”(Luke 4:18-21 nasb)
The ‘favorable year of the Lord’ was a term that expressed kingdom time. There was an allusion here to the Old Testament ‘year of Jubilee,’ that is, the 50th year, when the trumpet was blown and liberty was proclaimed throughout the land. The slaves were to be set free, all debts were to be remitted, and the restoration of lands was to be given back to the original family owners.
On the first day of the year of Jubilee, the priests would go throughout the land with the sounding of trumpets, declaring the blessing of the Jubilee year.
The year of Jubilee has a special Messianic meaning. It directed attention to the coming of Messiah.
The gospel message can be likened to a trumpet sounding our freedom in Christ…
Perhaps the saddest time in all of redemption history was when Israel rejected her King. In doing this she also rejected her Jubilee freedom, and has lived in bondage ever since. The Bible tells is that God wept over Jerusalem. (If you don’t know that Jesus is truly God, then you need to know this above all things.)
It says,
“When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, ‘If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.‘” (Luke 19:41-44)
How about you? If you have not already called upon Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, today could well be your day of visitation. Listen to the trumpet sound. Jesus Christ is saying that He loves you and He wants you to be free in Him.
The key to salvation is to believe in Him and forsake your old life of sins. He wants to give you a new life.
Here is God’s promise to you:
“But what does it say? ‘The message is near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart.’ This is the message of faith that we proclaim: If you declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For a person believes with his heart and is justified, and a person declares with his mouth and is saved.
“For the Scripture says, ‘Everyone who believes in him will not be ashamed.’ For there is no difference between Jew and Greek, because they all have the same Lord, who gives richly to all who call on him. For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’” (Rom 10:8-13 ISV)
Just remember that it is not about which religion you belong to. It is all about Jesus Christ. You want to belong to Him. And He will tell you which flock you need to be in.
There is nothing that makes me happier than to see my sweet Betty happy. And happy was what she was yesterday on Mother’s Day.
Yep, here’s a picture of the lady of my life with the newest addition to our family. “Jigger” was born Thursday, May 8, 2008. In this picture he is just three days old.
‘Jigger’ was a Mother’s Day present to Betty, from myself and our kids. He is a Yorkie (Yorkshire Terrier). Course Jigger is just his nickname.
Betty gave him his nickname. She will arrive at a much more dignified registered name that is suitable to the aristocratic, high-brow Martin family, when we bring him home. (Jigger needs to stay with his mama until he is eight weeks old. Don’t want to put any stress on him or his mama.)
Might mention that after Betty’s dog, Snickers (her pug), went to doggie heaven, some time later Betty began to desire another small doggie-friend that she can snuggle up with. You know, one of those doggies that she can put in her special ‘doggie’ purse. She was absolutely thrilled to find out about her Mother’s Day present.
And of course it would not do to neglect an honorable mention to another beautiful lady who had a major role in Jigger’s arrival, which is Jigger’s mama, Miss Faith. She is a darling. Here is a picture of Faith, in her palace along with Jigger nursing. By the way, it really is her palace. All her doggie friends and family want to nuzzle up to Jigger. So mama makes them keep their distance.
A special message for the ladies…
This past weekend was really great. Our special speaker was Nathan’s father-in-law, Lori’s dad, Dale Chapman. Dale and Barbara are such a beautiful couple. And Dale’s message yesterday morning was deeply moving. He had a special message for the ladies that had to do with getting past cultural norms and traditions. It was a very unusual message.
I would encourage my readers to take time to listen to Brother Dale. To view the message via video recording go to the following site, drop down to ‘View sermon archives,’ and click on ‘Sunday.’
Course many of my readers won’t know what ‘Red Dirt’ means. We have a beautiful National park area in Central Louisiana, called ‘Long Leaf Vista’, but locally known as ‘Red Dirt’. It is simply gorgeous with its canyons, nature walking trails, and views. You can see for about ten miles. And the wind whistling through the pine trees is like music to the soul.
Anyway, following our Mother’s Day luncheon, we set out to get a look-see at Betty’s new doggie, Jigger, and then headed on out to Red Dirt. Lois and Jenni rode with Betty and me, while Dale and Barbara rode with Nathan and Lori. Had a wonderful relaxing time.
The President’s daughter…
In reading the Drudge Report I saw the article concerning President Bush’s daughter’s marriage. The article said that Jenna picked the song, ‘You Are So Beautiful To Me,’ as the song she wanted for her dance with dad. When I saw that, my mind instantly went back to when my daughter Shana was just a wee bit of a girl. She would dance with me by standing on my feet, and I would sing that song to her.
Thought I’d share it with you.
Isn’t it something — You fall in love with every child born into your family. We began with Nathan, then David, then Andre, and then Shana. And you love every one of them in a very special way.
Well, thank you Lord for all the mama’s, and all the children, and all the doggies, and all the other pets. What a beautiful world you have created.
I enjoy reading Billy Graham’s column in our local paper. Someone wrote him asking, “How can I know if God has really forgiven me? I did something several years ago that was very wrong … Maybe I have committed the unforgivable sin. I worry about this all the time.”
Dr. Graham’s response really caught my eye. I’ll shorten his response to the key issue of what he had so share:
“Do not be consumed by the fear that you have somehow committed a sin that God can never forgive. The only sin God cannot forgive is the sin of rejecting his forgiveness.”
Then Dr. Graham gave the two-part Biblical antidote for the sin issue.
(1) “The key is to realize why God is willing to forgive our sins. God is willing to forgive our sins first of all because He loves us. Sin is a terrible thing; it cuts us off from God, and it makes us his enemies … But God doesn’t want us to be his enemies! He loves us and wants us to know him and be his friends and live with him forever in heaven.”
(2) “The second reason God is willing to forgive us is because He sent his only Son into the world to take away our sins. Jesus Christ was without sin — but on the cross every sin we have ever committed (including the sin that haunts you) was placed on him, and he died in our place.”
Dr. Graham went on to tell this lady that all she needed to do was confess her sin to Christ and ask Him to cleanse her — and he will.
And this brings me to what Jesus taught about sin and forgiveness. Some time ago I provided a study that had to do with prostitutes and tax collectors. Here is the study with a bit of rearrangement:
Did you know that the prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God before many others…
In my last two morning devotions my eyes have remained on the same scene. In fact it keeps appearing throughout the gospels. So once again it catches my eye. Take note of Luke 15:1,2:
“Now all the tax collectors and the sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him. Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, ‘This man receives sinners and eats with them.’”
Notice who it was that wanted to listen to Jesus. It has always amazed me how the common people felt so at home with Jesus.
They loved to listen to Him teach about the kingdom of God. He made them feel like they were valuable and that they were truly loved of God.
But I’ve been equally amazed at how the religious authorities took such an exception at the Lord’s willingness to accomodate sinners. To the religious minded leaders, the unlearned common people were to be ignored. What did they know?
Here is a glimpse of how the religious leaders looked at the common people. Jesus had healed a blind man. The authorities became infuriated with the blind man’s insistence that Jesus had to be from God. Finally they said to the blind man, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you teaching us?” (John 9:34)
Let’s take a closer look at these two issues, the sinner and the person whose world is wrapped up in religion.
Don’t think that the same problem hasn’t plagued the Church throughout the age.
Jesus gave a parable to the hardened religious leaders. He spoke of two sons who were told to work in the vineyard. One said he would not go, but he did. The other said he would go, but he did not. “Which did the will of the father,” Jesus asked. They said, “The first.”
The Lord then responded, “The tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.”
Isn’t this interesting that Jesus would speak of prostitutes entering the kingdom of God, ahead of those of a religious mind set? The Lord was speaking to the chief priests and elders. He was standing in the temple, and talking to the recognized leaders of world Judaism.
Not only is this a wonderful truth, but this truth is actually laid out in Biblical form. In the genealogy of Jesus Christ are four women. All four are Gentile in ancestry. Two of the women had prostitution written in their lives. Another was an adulteress. And one has an interesting story. Yet all four of these women helped to preserve the lineage of Jesus Christ, and they are the only women recorded in the genealogy of Jesus in the gospels.
Here is a brief rundown. Tamar dressed herself as a temple prostitute in order to deceive Judah. Through her the lineage of Judah was preserved. Through Judah would come King David, and eventually the Messiah, the one we Christians love, the Lord Jesus Christ. (Story in Genesis 38)
Next you have Rahab. As much as folk like to whitewash Rahab’s role, she was simply not an inn keeper. The Bible says she was a ‘harlot.’ [Hebrew is 'zanah' which means to be a harlot or commit fornication.] The two spies were at Rahab’s place for a reason. (Cf. Joshua 2)]
Yet it was Rahab who saw something with her heart. Because of her, when Israel overflowed the land, her household was spared, and she also became part of the lineage of the Messiah.
How about Ruth? Ruth’s story is one of the most beautiful in all the Bible. She was a Moabitess. Her mother-in-law said to Ruth,
“Wash yourself therefore, and anoint yourself and put on our best clothes, and go down to the threshing floor; but do not make yourself know to the man until he has finished eating and drinking.”
The Hebrew allows us to understand what happened. No need to bring this out. (Book of Ruth.)
Behind the story of Ruth was the levirate marriage, which, by the way, wasn’t really a marriage. The issue was to receive the seed of someone of close kinship to a dead husband, by which no child had been born, so that the dead husband’s line would not disappear. Once again we have a non-Israelite woman preserving the seed of Messiah.
Finally we have Bathsheba. You know her story well. From this woman came the lineage of Messiah. (Cf. 2 Samuel 11)
Why were these women placed in the genealogy of Jesus?
Certainly it was not an issue of condoning improper sexual behavior.
These women were placed in the genealogy of Jesus to tell the story of a great Savior for all of mankind, and that Jesus had truly taken on the flesh of sinful humanity, yet without sin on His part. And perhaps it was written to give a shock treatment to those who took their boast in being blood descendants of Abraham, and gave great importance to their twisted religion.
Now back to prostitutes entering the kingdom of God first. What does this tell us? Does it not say that religion in some instances can become a great hinderance to true faith that we are called to live in. Did not Jesus show loving kindness to the prostitutes and the tax-collectors? Is not the Church to do the same?
When certain religious minded men wished to stone a woman caught in adultery, what did Jesus do? He diverted the attention of the men to their own sins. He spoke nothing but kindness to the frightened woman. But he did tell her to free herself from the sinning business.
When Jesus met the woman at the well, who by the way had had five husbands, and was presently just living with a guy, what did Jesus do? He began helping her process her life from where she was to where He wanted her to be. Jesus spoke to her heart. He awakened life in her.
But again came the issue of religion. She said, “Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” There it is? All she knew was religion. It was like a pain in her heart, that she couldn’t do anything about.
But the Lord did what we must also learn to do. He took it out of the hands of religion. He said,
“Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.”
He goes on to say,
“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
But what the Lord was saying was that there aren’t going to be any more special mountains you need to go to. There are no special anointed places you need to seek out. No special religions that can take to themselves as being the true religion. There are no great religious figures you need to bless you. True worship will be of the heart. There is no true religion. There is only a true relationship with Jesus Christ.
Paul later expounded on this, in saying,
“Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.” (Phil3:2,3)
This brings us full circle back to the high priests, the elders, the prostitutes, and the tax collectors. We need to stop looking at the religious world for the answer. This includes all the hype you see on the television tube.
Jesus is present with every one of His people. He is in their hearts. He is in their mouths. He is in their lives. You see, religion stopped at the cross. It was nailed there in the body of Christ.
What does all this mean? It means that Jesus loves people.
It means the door to heaven has been flung open. The curtain has been ripped. No one can ever again stand between you and the Lord God. There is no prophet in the land that you need to go to.
Just listen with your heart. Jesus said, “I have other sheep also, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one Shepherd.” (John 10:16)
Does this do away with the Church? By no means. Actually it establishes the true Church. The Church has never been a building, or a denomination, or a religious institution. All those things we have managed to do for ourselves.
Christ Himself builds His Church, and He flocks His people as He wills. He calls us one, by one, by one. And as for our flock of gathering, we just need to find out where the Lord would have us to be. Every believer will have his or her own proper flock.
My greatest joy…
I have been a pastor for a long time. I can assure you that my greatest joy is to look at those who have been entrusted to my care, and say, “Thank you Lord. Thank you for all these beautiful people. They were once sickened in sin, but you have glorified Yourself in them. Thank you Jesus.”
Yes, I do get emails from folk who want to know if they have committed an unforgivable sin. What can I tell them that would differ from what Billy Graham said. He said it well enough.
– Do not be consumed by the fear that you have somehow committed a sin that God can never forgive. The only sin God cannot forgive is the sin of rejecting his forgiveness. –
“I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one.” Ezekiel 22:30 nasb
It took me a while to find a certain Scripture that would seem to speak for our dear friend Lois Gibson. This dear lady has relocated herself to the Pineville area, and she is sorely in need of a godly man to help with the chores. Don’t know what the problem is other than it seems her motto Scripture is,
‘“Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) …” (Partial quote from Romans 1:13 kjv.)
Truth of the matter is that Lois had four handsome men at her beck and call jest this morning, helping to put her house in proper working order.
Don’t know what those other guys would have done without my superior supervisory giftings.
Note - Picture used with permission by Lois. (She jest grinned.)
Ok, now for a more serious note…
Yep, went fishing again this past Saturday morning with my son Andre. Caught seven bass, eleven white perch, one gasper goo, and tossed back a few catfish ‘bait stealers.’
Wouldn’t be fair to tell who caught what, so here’s a picture of the two larger bass that my son Andre caught. I’m holding them closer to the camera so you can get a better idea of their true size. Actually they were about three and a half pounders.
Well, I must tell the truth. I caught two bass, of the smaller sort, but legal, and three or four white perch. Boy, you should have seen the ones that got away.
Still trying to bring my blog up-to-standards…
Guess I’ll need to look to my dear friend, Jenni Baier for help in that affair. Course Jenni is also relocating to the Pineville area. Should be here Friday. Course I don’t think Jenni is in the same search mode as is Lois.
Ok, guess its time to get out of the humor mode. And for all of you who have been missing my devotional studies, here is something I would like you to think about. Just this morning during my devotional time, I got to thinking, (dangerous thing to do), and it really came home to me that the key to life is easily found in one word, the word ‘Love.’
How so, you say? John 3:16 always says it best,
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His own begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”
Think about that for a bit. - God’s love is so awesome that He says whoever believes in the Son, shall not perish.
So how about a Bible study. Let’s talk about…
A love beyond understanding….
It all began in a small middle eastern country some time ago. And what began as a fledgling movement in the eastern world, mushroomed to become the largest religious ingathering of peoples this planet has ever known. And regardless of its diversity, Christianity remains unique to all the religions of the world. The love of God is the secret to the phenomena of Christianity.
All the apostles knew that the love of God was at the heart of His redemption plan. This is why the subject of ‘love’ is found so much in their writings. Paul says it best when he wrote,
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom8:38,39)
So the great mystery of the Christian faith is really the mystery of God’s love. He loved us before we ever knew Him. He never stops loving us.
The more you study the gospel, the more your understanding will be opened to the love of God and to the wonders of redemption. God’s love for His children knows no bounds. Not only were we chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, but our entire life was set before God at that time. Even our times on earth - where we would be born, what our nationality would be, and many many more factors - were determined beforehand. And behind all this stands the love of God.
One of my favorite songs will always be ‘If That Isn’t Love,’ by Dottie Rambo. Listen to it as it is sung by Elvis. Let God’s love speak to your heart.
The Lord gave David insight into this awesome area of spiritual realities. What is said by David is to be said by every child of God. David said,
“Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O Lord, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain to it.” (Psa139:4-6)
Paul concurs in saying that God’s love for us is incomprehensible. Incomprehensible simply means that the mind cannot grasp it. Believers soon come to realize that there are things we can perceive with our hearts, that cannot be fully expressed to others. Why? They are things of the heart, incomprehensible things.
Paul said,
“Who knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.”
Things of the heart are things that the God opens our hearts to perceive. They are instilled within us by the Holy Spirit.”
But what is it about God’s love that is so incomprehensible? We know the answer to that only so well. We have all found that God’s love is not static. His love surrounds us. God’s love reaches into our pits and draws us out. How often have we been ashamed of a misdeed, wondering how God could ever love us still, and yet, in our turning to Him, we found Him ever there.
I have never met a Christian who could not look back on their childhood, and say, “Lord, You were there even then.”
Not even the prophets understood this. Those times they had to issue stern pronouncements, in a moment of time a love song would burst forth. This song was about God and His children.
A example is with the prophet Micah. After dealing with issues of judgments, the prophet writes,
“Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity and passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in unchanging love … You will give truth to Jacob and unchanging love to Abraham…” (Micah 7:18-20)
Unchanging love to Abraham is the catch phrase. All true believers have been made children of Abraham through our faith in Jesus Christ. Paul says that we are the children of promise.
Then we have this from Jeremiah, which again speaks of God’s love for His people;
“The Lord appeared to him from afar, saying, ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness.’” (Jer31:3)
Again we hear a call of eternity. Jesus expresses this eternal call in saying, “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you, abide in My love.” (John 15:9)
Now for another step - Did you know that the single greatest testimony that God is your very own Father is your love for Jesus Christ? Jesus said to certain of the Jews,
“If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me.” (John 8:42)
Now couple this with how the apostle Peter described the heart of a true believer;
“And though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.” (1Pet1:8)
And so the gospel is actually the greatest love story ever told. This is why Christians sing love songs to Jesus. We sing love songs to the Father. We sing of His love to us. We sing, “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world.” We sing, “Love lifted me. Love lifted me.” We sing, “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
But why? Why do we Christians have such passion over the love of God. After all, you don’t hear Muslims singing, ‘Mohammed, lover of my soul.’ It can be summed up in the cry of the human heart. This cry can only be met in an encounter with Jesus. Paul describes it as the ‘Abba! Father!’ cry. We have found our Father.
Abba, Father, is an expression of true sonship. It speaks of intimacy. It is a cry of recognition. It is a cry that goes far beyond religion. It is the cry of a child’s whose heart has been filled with ‘Father consciousness.’ But it is a cry that goes both ways. We say, “My Father.” God says, “My beloved child.”
So we ask, ‘How much to you love us, Jesus.’ He stretches out His arms, and says, ‘This much.’ And His outstretched hands is the message of the cross.
Don’t know what it is, but something just jumps on me about having some funning. Reckon I need to dedicate this part of my entry to two young ladies who are in the process of moving to Louisiana to be part of the Christian Challenge family.
By the way this entry will be very much different from the usual. I’m gonna share some music that I hope stirs your hearts with a love for Louisiana and for Country music. Besides that I’m still trying to work some kinks out of my blog. Thought having a bit of fun would help me with another test.
Anyhow, now for the two young belles from other places. Lois Gibson is originally from New Jersey, but she be a coming to Louisiana by way of Houston, Texas. And Jenni Baier is also from New Jersey, but she’s a coming to Louisiana by way of Tampa, Florida. Whoeee, those ladies sho nuff do git around.
Now Jenni, I’m still working on that inspiration that you had concerning me and my cousin sounding like we were from Mayberry. Course I tank you were jest joshing. You were, weren’t you?
Anyway girls, here’s a great big howdy. Thought now might be a good time to begin getting you acclamated to Louisiana. So, if’n you don’t mind, just take a listen to this introduction to Cajun Louisiana…
Ok, now for the Cajun national anthem….
Hope I’m not in trouble. After all, most folk expect me to provide a least a bit of a Bible devotion. But fer now I’ll jest keep on a going with my Louisiana country love. How many of you old timers remember the song, “I Dreamed of a Hillbilly Heaven.”
Now that I have you weeping, think I’ll jest mosey on down the road. (Also want to mention that I’m still trying to work some kinks out of my blog. Oh, I think I already mentioned that.)
Don’t let the title throw you. The emphasis involves the original purpose of creation. The story of creation is the story of Jesus Christ and the children of God. If you love Bible studies, you will certainly enjoy this one. I always let the Bible speak for itself. (If you are unable to be with us this evening, the visual study will be archived for a week.)
My text Scripture will include Ephesians 2:4-7 and also John 11:49-52. You may find it interesting to know that Israel’s high priest, Caiaphas, prophesied over Jesus, without knowing it, and yet it was this same Caiaphas who was responsible for sending Christ, the high priest of the new covenant, to the cross.
What Caiaphas said was given to him by the Holy Spirit. It had to do with the gathering of God’s children.
The teaching will include three major points. (You can fill in the blanks.)
I - The Children of Eternity
II - The Signature of God’s Children
III - Why it can never be religion
Just a taste for the teaching - Did you know that all children of God have a three-fold signature in them that goes much deeper than religion. This is why it can never be religion.
The three-fold signation can be capsulated as the love sign, the homeward sign, and the vision sign.
Ok, enough on that. I’ll need to be in the pulpit in about two and a half hours.
Still checking out my blog…
This shortened journal entry will go out to my subscribers and will also appear on the Christian Challenge web site. Still not certain if it will go to the various groups that it is intended for.
I need to run a test on my blog. Seems each time there is an update, my next entry (or two) fails to go out to subscribers. Hope this is just a fluke. Anyway, I’m sending this out for a check. (Yesterday’s blog was titled ‘How God Shapes Our Life in Christ.’ Not sure who received it.)
In my last journal entry I shared a devotional study entitled, ‘The Footsteps of Messiah.’ I also wanted to offer a study that shows how the Lord helps us make our transformation from being a newbie believer into a mature believer.
With that in mind here is a short devotional study on…
How God Reshapes Our Life in Christ By Lawrence E. (Buddy) Martin
The soul speaks of that which makes us who we are as a person. It is our individuality. All sinners are alike with regard to their soul. This is why Paul said,
“Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.” Eph2:3
The apostle is saying that it doesn’t matter if we are of a Jewish or a Gentile background. We all had souls of sinners.
David understood this issue. He said,
“Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.” Psa51:5
David was speaking of his natural life. Paul takes it further;
“Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?” Rom7:25
Both David and Paul knew the answer. David looked ahead and saw the resurrection of Christ. This is why he said,
“The Lord is my light and my salvation; who shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life; whom shall I dread?” Psa27:1
David had seen the beauty of the Lord. He saw Jesus of the cross. He saw Jesus of resurrected glory. It was the same with Isaiah. John said that Isaiah saw the glory of Jesus.
What of the Christian soul? When a person is born again a number of things happens. The Christian is given a Christ like nature. But a problem remains. It is not our soul that is born again. It is that part of us that is called ’spirit.’ The Christian becomes a spiritual being. Yet his or her personal life (soul) has to be redeveloped with spiritual values.
Hebrews 4:12, explains it this way;
“For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
The new birth is a circumcision where the heart and soul once again have distinct functions.
Just because a person is born again does not mean this is the end of the story. Our personal life has been shaped by the world. It must now be reshaped by the Holy Spirit. Paul spoke of this in saying,
“My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you.” Gal4:19
When a new believer first enters the realm of salvation, there is a burst of spiritual life. There is joy! There is peace! There is wonderment! Grace flows like a river. Then somewhere along the way this feeling of joy starts to wane. It could be that a religious mind set is coming into place. It may be time to break the shackles.
In the Scriptures, the term ‘truth’ does not refer simply to a doctrine. The Greek term is used in the new covenant for our experiencing the realities of Christ. It is so easy for a Christian’s life to get bogged down in letterism. Paul said the letter kills whereas the Spirit gives life.
How can Paul say such a thing? We need all the laws we can get! Not really. Paul understood the new covenant as well as it can be understood. He knew that every person who is truly born again is under the life supervision of the Holy Spirit.
It is the Spirit of God who births us, seals us, tutors us, educates us, places us where we need to be, refreshes us, turns our trials into victories, helps us escape bad teachings, keeps the glory of Jesus before us, and many such things. Our final presentation in heaven is a thing of the Spirit.
In the new covenant this all centers on sonship. Paul said,
“Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” Gal4:6
Our relationship with the Father is not that of a servant. We are sons and daughters of the living God. Angels know the Divine seal upon God’s children. And so in the meantime, our inward life is continually being reshaped by the Spirit of God.
This work of the Holy Spirit is so powerful that He can and does take every situation of our life, and turn it into part of our reshaping in Christ. This is why the apostle said,
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”
Paul explains God’s purpose as our final glorification together with Christ. In another place the apostle writes,
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image (inward spiritual likeness) from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” 2Co3:18
The glory is the glory of Jesus. But where do we see His glory? Paul’s point is that the new covenant believer can now look at the sacred writings, and the glory of Jesus will reflect itself upon their inward life.
Out of this we learn to say,
“O Lord, my heart is not proud, nor my eyes haughty; nor do I involve myself in great matters, or in things too difficult for me. Surely I have composed and quieted my soul; like a weaned child rests against his mother, my soul is like a weaned child within me.” Psa131
Can you let your soul become relaxed in the knowledge that Jesus is going to see you through? Can you let go of bitterness? Can you be quiet in His rest? Will you let the peace of the Lord rule in your heart?
I was up at 4:30 a.m. this morning for another jaunt to Cleco Lake. This time Andre, Judy and me were going after white perch. The time of compassionate fishing was over. Sure enough, we caught twenty-four beautiful white perch and two channel catfish.
The picture tells the tale. At upper left is Queen Bee Judy, taking over the cleaning job from Andre. Ain’t she pretty. I knew I had to go fishing this morning when Andre told me that he was taking a pretty lady along. Course I knew all the time he was talking about Judy.
Next to Judy are the two hunks, Andre and papa bear Buddy. Naturally good looks just runs in our family. I’ve always called that the curse of the Martins.
Anyway, the bottom picture is yours truly holding up two of the white perch that we caught. I’m holding them closer to the camera so you’ze can get a good idea of their size.
Now as to who caught what, I really ought to leave that unsaid. But being the gentleman that I am, I think Judy and I (or is it ‘me’. I’m always confused on which word to use) caught maybe five or six a piece, give or take one or two on my part. Andre caught the rest.
Course Andre knew exactly where to put his bait. Fact of the matter is, I distinctly heard Judy tell him that if he didn’t stop catching so many fish, she was going to throw him out of the boat. Now that’s the honest truth. Seems to me that when the Queen Bee speaks, you ought to go to listening.
What does any of this have to do with my journal subject? Not a thing in the world. So, let me share a bit of a devotional study. This is especially for my readers who enjoy studying the Scriptures.
The Footsteps of Messiah
By LAWRENCE E. (BUDDY) MARTIN
The early Jewish believers spoke of their walk with the Lord as “The Way.” (Greek “o hodos.”) The Greek term can mean the road, or, the journey, or even, that way. This term is deeply rooted in prophetic writings. Because of its Messianic overtones it was taken up very early by Jewish believers with regard to their walk with the Lord. (You find references to ‘the Way’ in Acts 9:2; 19:23; 24:22)
The ancients also used a similar term, iqvot haMashiach, which means the footsteps of Messiah. (Mashiach is Hebrew for Christ.) They taught that the Messiah leaves his footprints in the souls of those who belong to Him. This may sound peculiar to us, but it does give expression to the beauty of a believer’s walk with the Lord.
Listen to Psalm 85:10-13:
“Lovingkindness and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth springs up from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. Indeed the Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its produce. Righteousness will go before Him and will make His footsteps into a way.”
It is often in Psalms that we find the most beautiful expressions of the Messiah. Where it says, “Truth springs from the earth,” this surely speaks of Jesus. Isaiah 11:1 says,
“Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit.”
Jesus was every bit a man. His body was an earthly body just like ours. Yet He was the Lord of glory.
Where it says, “Righteousness looks down from heaven,” this would relate to the voice that came out of heaven; “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.” Matt3:17
Where the Psalmist says, “Righteousness will go before Him and will make His footsteps into a way” we need to hear the conversation between Jesus and John the Baptist at the River Jordan.
John hesitates to baptize Jesus, “I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me!”
The Lord responded, “Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Thus water baptism is seen as belonging to the way.
Jesus walked into our world to meet us, to take us by the hand, and to walk us into His world. This is the yoke experience. Jesus said, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matt11:29 (Remember my last entry concerning the mule-headed believer?)
Notice carefully that Jesus says we will “learn from” Him. This can mean no less than Jesus walking with us every step of the journey. We hear this in His final promise to the disciples; “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matt28:20
Why was Jesus baptized in water? To fulfill righteousness. Why are we baptized in water? To follow in His footsteps. Where do the footsteps of Jesus take us? Keep in mind that the Psalmist said, “Righteousness will go before Him and will make His footsteps into a way.”
The footsteps of Jesus carried Him to the cross. There his feet were nailed to the wood. Our baptism in water is a picture of the cross. Jesus was taken down and placed in an empty tomb. He arose. He walked out of the grave. He departed from the earth and ascended to the throne of glory.
Did God make his footsteps into a way? Indeed! The Lord Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” He also told the disciples, “Where I go, you cannot follow Me now but you will follow later.” John 14:6; 13:36
Does the Lord not pass us through the cross and to our final destination and placement in His eternal kingdom? Yes, a thousand times yes. Every child of God has imprinted in his or her soul “the Way.” It is this imprint that keeps us longing for our final destination.
The footsteps of Messiah are eternal. The prophet said, “His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity.” Micah5:2
The Messiah has always been present in the lives of His people. He has left his footsteps across the sands of history.
Where the ancients said the footsteps of Messiah are in the souls of those who long for Him, this accords with the new covenant. Paul said,
“In the future there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not to me only, but also to all who have loved His appearing.” 2Tim4:8
Perhaps what is written about God’s people of long ago best tells the story. It says, “[Abraham] was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”
Then again, “But as it is, they [the believers of old] desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.” Cf. Heb11:13-16
So, we are still telling the story — If you are walking with Jesus, you are walking in the footsteps of Messiah.
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could share all the names of my kin who have served as warriors, but I’d be sure to miss someone. (On the Martin side, the very first Martin that came to Louisiana was a Revolutionary soldier.)
Think about it.
those doggies that she can put in her special ‘doggie’ purse. She was absolutely thrilled to find out about her Mother’s Day present. 
Jesus gave a parable to the hardened religious leaders. He spoke of two sons who were told to work in the vineyard. One said he would not go, but he did. The other said he would go, but he did not. “Which did the will of the father,” Jesus asked. They said, “The first.” 
religion in some instances can become a great hinderance to true faith that we are called to live in. Did not Jesus show loving kindness to the prostitutes and the tax-collectors? Is not the Church to do the same?
All the apostles knew that the love of God was at the heart of His redemption plan. This is why the subject of ‘love’ is found so much in their writings. Paul says it best when he wrote,
What of the Christian soul? When a person is born again a number of things happens. The Christian is given a Christ like nature. But a problem remains. It is not our soul that is born again. It is that part of us that is called ’spirit.’ The Christian becomes a spiritual being. Yet his or her personal life (soul) has to be redeveloped with spiritual values. 
refreshes us, turns our trials into victories, helps us escape bad teachings, keeps the glory of Jesus before us, and many such things. Our final presentation in heaven is a thing of the Spirit.
let go of bitterness? Can you be quiet in His rest? Will you let the peace of the Lord rule in your heart?
